The Austrian violinist, conductor and composer Josef Bayer served as a violinist in the Vienna court orchestra, in 1885 taking on the direction of the ballet, a medium with which he is closely associated.
Ballet Music
Bayer wrote music for some 22 ballets. He won particular fame for his Die Puppenfee (‘The Fairy Doll’), set in a toy-shop where, inevitably, the dolls come to life when left to themselves. Less well known is the ballet Sonne und Erde (‘Sun and Earth’), based on the four seasons of the year.